'Ran Into The Flames To Save My Baby': Parent's Horror After Amravati NICU Fire

Three newborns died after a fire broke out in the NICU of Maharashtra’s Amravati District Women’s Hospital. 36 other infants were rescued. A parent who rushed inside to save his 8-day-old baby recalled seeing other newborns covered in black ashes.

Image Credit : X/Vani Mehrotra @vani_mehrotra

Man recalls Amravati hospital fire tragedy

What began as an ordinary night of anxious waiting outside a government hospital in Maharashtra’s Amravati turned into a nightmare within minutes.

Parents and relatives of newborns admitted to the District Women’s Hospital were asleep outside the building, hoping their babies would recover and return home. Then, in the early hours of Monday, a fire broke out inside the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Three newborns died in the tragedy. Thirty-six others were rescued.

Three newborns were tragically killed after a major fire broke out in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), also referred to as the Special Newborn Care Unit, at the District Women's Hospital in Amravati, Maharashtra, early Monday.

The fire reportedly broke out at nearly 3.30… pic.twitter.com/3Ncz15TCxT

— Vani Mehrotra (@vani_mehrotra) August 24, 2026

For Yogesh Savarkar, a resident of Achalpur in Amravati, the night remains a horrifying memory. His wife and eight-day-old baby were admitted to the hospital when the fire broke out. Sleeping outside the building, he suddenly found himself rushing into a smoke-filled hospital to save his child.

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'I went and brought my child down'

According to officials, the fire broke out at around 3.15 am after a ventilator in the NICU allegedly caught fire.

Savarkar said his baby was admitted on the first floor. As panic spread and flames engulfed part of the ward, he rushed upstairs and brought his child to safety.

However, what he saw inside the hospital left a lasting impression.

“My child was on the first floor, and I personally went and brought him down. However, I could see black ashes on the other children in the hospital,” Savarkar told news agency PTI.

The NICU housed some of the hospital's most vulnerable patients - premature, low-weight and critically ill newborns who required constant medical attention.

As smoke spread through the care unit, parents, hospital staff and security guards scrambled to get the babies out.

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Guards and nurses rushed to rescue newborns

Parents recalled scenes of chaos as the fire spread through the ward.

Savarkar claimed that security guards were among the first to reach the affected area and began helping rescue the infants. He also saw a nurse assisting in the evacuation.

Officials said 39 infants were admitted across three compartments in the NICU — one for inborn babies, another for outborn babies and a third step-down care section for children who were nearing discharge.

The fire reportedly started in the compartment for outborn babies after a ventilator caught fire.

Nine newborns were present in that section. Three died, while six were rescued.

The remaining children from other sections of the NICU were also evacuated as staff rushed to move them away from the smoke and flames.

Some of the rescued infants were shifted to other medical facilities for treatment. Officials said six babies were admitted to a super speciality hospital, while four others were taken to the Divisional Referral Services Hospital. One of the infants was reported to be in a critical condition.

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Families allege lapses and question safety systems

As families struggled to come to terms with the deaths, some relatives blamed the hospital administration for the tragedy.

They said they did not know what exactly caused the fire but recalled seeing flames raging through the ward and panic among parents and staff.

Some relatives also claimed that the ward's water spray system did not function when the fire broke out. They questioned why the system was not activated immediately during the emergency.

These allegations are yet to be independently established.

Police and other agencies are investigating the cause of the fire. Fire personnel and the Public Works Department's electrical wing have also been informed to examine what triggered the blaze.

The investigation is expected to look into the ventilator fire, electrical systems and the hospital's emergency response and fire safety arrangements.

Image Credit : X/Vani Mehrotra @vani_mehrotra

Government orders comprehensive inquiry

The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has ordered a high-level inquiry and said strict action will be taken against those responsible for the fire. The state govt also assured financial assistance of 5 lakh rupees to affected families

Besides, Amravati Police Commissioner Rakesh Ola said the ventilator fire occurred in the outborn babies' compartment of the NICU.

Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who is also the guardian minister of Amravati, expressed grief over the deaths and said a comprehensive inquiry had been ordered.

He said hospital staff on duty rushed to the spot and evacuated other children after the blaze erupted.

Bawankule also assured the families that the government would provide all necessary assistance and that injured infants were receiving medical care.

The minister said he had spoken to officials concerned and that the administration was closely monitoring the situation.

Amravati NICU Fire Incident: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis ordered a high-level inquiry into this incident. Strict action will be taken against those responsible for this incident. The state government will provide financial assistance of 5 lakh rupees to the families of the… https://t.co/cV362Uqdru

— ANI (@ANI) August 24, 2026

For the families waiting outside the hospital that night, however, the tragedy has left behind memories that will be difficult to erase.

They had arrived at the government hospital hoping that their newborns would receive life-saving care. Instead, they woke to smoke, flames, cries for help and a desperate effort to carry tiny infants out of danger.

Savarkar managed to bring his eight-day-old child to safety. But three other families lost their newborns before the night was over.

As investigators work to establish how the fire began and whether any safety failures contributed to the deaths, the images described by parents, vulnerable newborns caught in smoke and covered in black ashes, have become a haunting reminder of the tragedy that unfolded inside Amravati's government hospital.

(With inputs from agencies)